Day: September 2, 2024

Children living with muscle wasting conditions rally together at charity sport event

On Saturday 24 August 2024 Muscular Dystrophy UK and Scottish Disability Sport hosted a free sporting event.

The leading charity for more than 110,000 children and adults in the UK living with one of over 60 muscle wasting and weakening conditions hosted the free event for children aged under 18 living with muscle wasting and weakening conditions.

Children came together from different parts of Scotland and had the opportunity to try different sporting activities, such as curling, powerchair football, boccia and swimming. The day was a success as they learnt new skills and could meet other children living with a muscle wasting and weakening condition.

Joe Moan, from Forth Valley, attended the charity event with his son who has Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Joe said: “It’s great to meet up with parents you haven’t seen since the last event.

“These events are confidence building for kids – they get to try new sports that they haven’t tried before. It’s great to watch my son interact with peers and children with a similar range of movement and shared experiences. I would recommend.” 

Participants at Muscular Dystrophy UK and Scottish Disability Sport event 2024 Copyright @MuscularDystrophyUK © Julie Broadfoot 

Jacqueline Munro, Head of Regional Support, Outreach, and Information, who attended on the day said: “We believe in the power of community and inspire collaboration across our whole muscle wasting and weakening community.

“Events like this are a brilliant way of bringing people together, from the children taking part in the activities to their parents or carers watching from the side lines. A huge thank you to everyone who attended and to Scottish Disability Sport for partnering with us.”

Scottish Disability Sport is the Scottish governing and co-coordinating body of all sports for people of all ages and abilities with a physical, sensory or learning disability.

Joshua Thomson, Events Manager for Scottish Disability Sport said: “The event was a brilliant opportunity to provide sport and physical activity to young people with muscle wasting conditions, allowing them to grow and develop a community.

“Seeing the development of friendships and the joy on the participants’ faces throughout the day has demonstrated the value that events like this can have.

“There were some fantastic skills on show throughout the boccia, curling and swimming sessions.

“Thank you to Muscular Dystrophy UK and to everyone who attended, we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and hope to see these children back at more events in the future.”

Participants at Muscular Dystrophy UK and Scottish Disability Sport event 2024 Copyright @MuscularDystrophyUK © Julie Broadfoot 

Special thanks to Scottish Boccia, Scottish Curling and representatives from the Scottish Swimming for their support on the day.

Find out more about Muscular Dystrophy UK and how the charity can provide support   musculardystrophyuk.org/support

Delivering a ‘wealthier, fairer and greener Scotland’

Swinney to publish Programme for Government on Wednesday

Plans to deliver a wealthier, fairer and greener Scotland despite difficult financial challenges will be announced by First Minister John Swinney at Holyrood this week.

The First Minister will this week deliver his first Programme for Government since taking office, laying out how the Scottish Government will focus on improving the lives of the people of Scotland.

First Minister John Swinney said: “Against a challenging financial backdrop this year’s Programme for Government will set out clear actions to deliver real change for the people of Scotland.

“The Prime Minister was clear last week that the UK Budget, to be delivered in October, will be painful, and the reality is that the UK’s finances will inevitably affect the funding available to us here in Scotland. Their decisions mean tough decisions ahead for Scotland.

“Yet despite this the Scottish Government will continue to prioritise action to eradicate child poverty, to grasp the opportunities of delivering net zero and to grow the economy by investing in public services and infrastructure.

“While we will work with the UK Government wherever we can, we will continue to urge them to drop the damaging cuts and set new spending rules that support investment.

“The Scottish Government already has a strong track record of improving lives in challenging circumstances. We have delivered an expansion of funded childcare, record investment in the NHS, renewable energy development, and the introduction of the Scottish Child Payment, which are strong foundations for this year’s Programme for Government.

“Even when faced with unprecedented budgetary constraints, our aim will be to improve people’s lives by focusing on clear priorities that make the biggest difference.”